


Ripples

by Macx



Series: Seismic [6]
Category: Tremors: The Series
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-12
Updated: 2011-05-12
Packaged: 2017-10-19 07:49:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/198575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Macx/pseuds/Macx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Happy birthday, Burt!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ripples

 

The moment Burt Gummer walked into his bunker he knew that something wasn't right. It was a feeling, a kind of sixth sense when it came to his home, something that had kept him alive throughout the years.  
Someone had been here in his absence.  
The only person Burt could think of who would come here was Tyler, his lover. But usually Tyler respected his privacy, didn’t enter his home without him present or at least his knowledge; though he could at any given time -- Burt had given Tyler the code. It had been his trust in the younger man, and a sign of how much Tyler meant to him on a personal level, and he knew Tyler had understood the gesture. The code meant that Reed could come whenever he wanted, could get whatever he wanted, could do whatever pleased him – but he had yet to. They had been here always together.  
Burt walked around the main room, eyes methodically checking his equipment, his supplies… everything. What could it be that Tyler had sought here – or found?  
\-- if it had been Tyler at all, that was.  
The old paranoia reared its ugly head. If someone else knew his combination… if someone had broken in here… if…  
Standing absolutely still, eyes wandering over the interior he suddenly saw it.  
And stared for a whole minute, frozen to the spot, disbelief in his eyes..  
There, on his gun wall, where he had once had his beloved weapons collection, where now only the sad outlines of his most dearest firearms spoke of what had been, – one shape wasn’t right. Yesterday there had been only the sketch of a gun, now there was the real thing.  
A gun.  
Brand new.  
Polished black.  
Burt approached it like he would a dangerous animal, but instead of caution there was wonder in his eyes. Absolute and complete amazement.  
Carefully, Burt picked up the weapon from where it had been placed on his wall. A FN five-seveN.  
"FN five-seveN," he murmured to himself. "Double action pistol with a 20-round magazine capacity. Extremely light weight, 1.7 pound, design. 5.7x28mm ammunition; has the capability of penetrating body armor at extended ranges."  
His voice held a note of awe.  
The handle fit into his hand as if it had been built for it. Smooth and powerful. Dark eyes took in the sleek gun barrel and his fingers ghosted almost reverently over the black polymer frame.  
That was when Burt noticed the box with the little note on it. He didn’t have to pick it up to know what the box contained – the ammunition.  
But he opened the note and his eyes widened. Reading the words, Gummer felt a twinge of guilt – immediately followed by a wave of warmth.  
It just said, ‘Happy Birthday. Tyler’.  
Burt just stared at the note, a million questions running through his mind.  
How had Tyler acquired that gun? It was for law enforcement or military use only! And it was costly. Damn, the gun alone, without the ammunition, was in the range of close to $700!  
He chased those thoughts away, drowning them in the emotions rising inside him as he carefully placed the card back onto the ammunitions box.  
Happy Birthday…  
* * *

Tyler arrived at the bunker at dusk, the distinctive shape of Burt’s truck telling him his lover was home – and had most certainly already found his little present. Better than cake and candles, he mused, though for a time he had considered a party, only for the five of them. Now that he knew his lover's birthday he had planned to do something special for him.  
Asking Nancy for advice had turned out to be a good idea, because her advice had simply been, “Leave it.”  
“Okay, if you say so.”  
“I do, Tyler. I tried it once – only once – and believe me, it’s an experience I don’t want to repeat. And you wouldn’t want it either. Would be bad karma for your relationship.”  
“What happened?” he asked curiously.  
“You mean apart from the fact that he shot the cake?”  
Tyler couldn’t help grinning at the picture – and stopped immediately when he noticed Nancy wasn’t smiling.  
“You mean, he …?” Tyler gestured. "Really?"  
“Oh yes, he did. I had planned a surprise party, even made the cake look like a Shrieker…" Nancy grimaced. "I should have remembered. Anyway… we all yelled 'surprise', one of us had a small whistle, and, well… he took the cake as a Shrieker and shot it. Can you imagine what a mess a simple .38 caliber bullet can make of a cream cake? I found cream and chocolate in the curtains for weeks.”  
He stared at the blond woman, but Nancy wasn't exactly in a joking mood. She was serious about it.  
“And then?”  
“Then he just looked at us, turned and went away. Didn’t speak to me for two days.”  
“Ouch.”  
“Yes, ouch."  
"Why?"  
Nancy shrugged. "Beats me. It's not like he wouldn't come for a brunch or a potluck or even drop by at Mindy's birthday parties. I don't know why the press calls him antisocial. He's a warm and kind-hearted, though very private man."  
She smiled and Tyler chuckled. Nancy knew Gummer, all right. They all did.  
"As for why he doesn't want his own birthday celebrated? No idea, Tyler. Just… don't throw a party, give him a cake, or try something along the lines of wrapped presents."  
"Okay…"  
"Whatever your plans are, think twice about them.”  
And Tyler had. He knew from the start that Burt Gummer wasn’t a man who liked surprises, but after all they had been through together, after all the trust Burt had put in him over and over again, after all the revelations and past demons coming back to haunt them, he just needed a little break, something entirely – normal.  
Well, define ‘normal’ when it came to one Burt Gummer, but nevertheless … something as normal as giving the man he loved a birthday present. Especially after having found out when exactly that birthday had been – right in the middle of the deepest mess they ever had been stuck in. It had been the day Tyler had almost lost his lover to a Shrieker attack.  
Even now, having Burt alive and well at his side, the sheer thought gave him the creeps and was the trigger for too many nightmares.  
It had taken him a while to come up with an idea that was the most unlikely to backfire, to trigger bad memories, and he had used some unlikely help in acquiring the wanted item. Tyler had spent hours browsing through weapons magazines, studying the shapes on Burt's gun wall, and finally he had made a list.  
General Jack McBain had been rather surprised to hear from him, but Tyler had been even more surprised that the other man was willing to help. Even with such an unusual request – even if such guns were only available to the military and law enforcement. Tyler had no idea how many strings the general had pulled to get the firearm, but he had come through. He was secretly amazed.  
Tyler had driven into Bixby to pick up the personally delivered package with the, for him, priceless gift. Pricey, too. He smiled. Well, he knew it would be worth it. Burt mourned the loss of all his weapons and if Tyler could make a small contribution, he would. In his own way.  
Entering the bunker Tyler looked for his lover, but Burt was nowhere to be seen. The kitchen was empty, as was the surveillance corner, and the door to the bedroom was open. The gun was on the rack, looking new and shiny and sharp. Tyler smiled to himself as he walked into the bedroom.  
“Burt? Hey, Burt, you… whoa!”  
It was the only thing he could utter when he was swept off his feet, finding himself flat on his back on the bed with an armful of… well, Burt. After a second of shock Tyler returned the fervent kiss, wrapping his arm around the slender waist above him, and then there were only hands on his body, skin against skin.  
His brain shut down, deciding it wasn't needed, and instinct took over.

* * *

Snuggling into the warm embrace Tyler ran a lazy hand over the arm holding him against a strong chest, stroking the warm skin, enjoying the post-sex cuddling almost as much as the act itself.  
“So,” he murmured, “you like it, huh?”  
“I sure do. She’s a beauty.”  
“Good. Happy Birthday, partner.”  
“It’s not my birthday, Tyler, in case you haven’t noticed,” Burt chastised him gently.  
“No, not today. Sshh,” Tyler silenced the protest with a soft kiss. “I felt like it. Now leave it, will ya?”  
"But how did you get the…?"  
Another kiss. "I said leave it."  
"It's not something you find in a store!" Burt protested.  
Tyler smiled down at his curious lover, kissing him again softly.  
"Found it on Ebay."  
"What?!"  
He chuckled. "No, of course not. Burt, calm down."  
"But then how…?"  
"My secret. Enjoy."  
"You know I don't like secrets!"  
"You've got to live with that one, Burt."  
Gummer frowned, but the expression never reached his eyes. His hands ran up Tyler's ribs in a tender caress, then over his back and down again.  
"You're an amazing man, Tyler Reed."  
"What? You found that out only just now?" the younger man teased, laughing.  
"No, I knew it from the beginning."  
The serious statement had Tyler look into the suddenly so open, brown eyes. "And you're the most amazing man I ever met, Burt Gummer." Then he broke into a slight smile. "Glad you liked it. And don't worry. It's all legal."  
Burt pulled him down, lips brushing over Tyler's. "I love it, Tyler. Thank you."  
Tyler snuggled back down against the other man, closing his eyes, feeling content. A soft kiss was dropped onto his temple, then Burt made himself comfortable, never relinquishing his hold on Tyler.  
As birthdays went, this one had been great. Even if it had been weeks late… even if there had been no cake, but the party had been… Tyler smiled sleepily… oh yeah, well, it had been a hit.


End file.
